Brenda Neal knew she was dying. “Could feel my life just draining from me. And I knew then this was it. And I just began to pray.”
In late December 2023, during a routine hysterectomy, doctors discovered Brenda had a renal aneurysm, a bulging area in the artery leading to her kidney. They concluded the aneurysm wouldn’t rupture any time soon and put off surgery until late February, two months later. Then, two weeks before the surgery, Brenda was at a Bible study in her home when the aneurysm ruptured and Brenda started bleeding out. She recalls,“I felt this pain, sharp pain in my left side. And I thought, ‘what is that’? Blood was everywhere. It was everywhere. I had never seen that much blood in my entire life. And it terrified me.” Brenda’s brother, Bishop Ray Neal, who was leading the Bible study, called 911. He says, “I knew she needed help. And I just began to pray and try to talk with her. Have a quick prayer and talk with her. It was only God that kept me calm.” Although frightened, Brenda also prayed, ready for the Lord to take her home. She recalls, “The Holy Spirit said, ‘Stop!’. And He said, ‘now is not your time to die.’”
Paramedics rushed Brenda to Piedmont Henry Hospital in Stockbridge, Georgia, just 10 minutes away. A CAT scan revealed it was worse than they thought: she was bleeding into her abdomen. ER doctor Psyche Robert worked on her and recalls, “At one point her blood pressure went down, her heart rate went down, you know, so it was like scary for a minute. But we were able to resuscitate her and got her stabilized. But yeah, it was definitely concerning.” Although stabilized, Brenda needed immediate surgery. The only doctor they could find to perform the procedure was 140 miles away in Augusta. Brenda would have to survive the two-hour ambulance trip. Dr. Robert says, “At the time she was transported. The bleeding had subsided. But I was scared that of course you can just start again.”
Meanwhile, Brenda’s friends continued to pray. Her brother called CBN’s prayer line. Bishop Neal says, “Told them the situation and they prayed with me, and I felt even more peace because of the power of agreement. And I just felt the peace of God just remained with me in the process.” Brenda arrived at Piedmont-Augusta Hospital in stable condition. She recalls one of the nurses prepping her for surgery praying for her. Brenda recalls, “I said, ‘Oh, the Lord has me surrounded with his physicians and nurses and that’s why I know I’m gonna be okay. He’s got the right people in place’. “ Complicating things more, Brenda had only one functioning kidney. Her surgeon, Dr. Marat Goldenberg, said depending on how the surgery went, she could lose it. Dr. Goldenberg says, “Because the bleeding continued, she was at risk of losing her life. And I told her if I had to save her life, I would sacrifice the left kidney. She does not have a right kidney, so she would’ve had to go on dialysis.” Her brother Neal says, “While she was in surgery, I was praying, asking God, ‘Guide the surgeon’s hand, all that are in the operating room, give them the knowledge and wisdom, all that they need to take care of my sister’.”
Dr. Goldenberg was able to fix the torn artery but now Brenda had blood in her urine, a sign of possible blood clots in her kidney. Another surgery was required to insert a stent in the artery. Once again Brenda would be at risk of losing her kidney and being on dialysis the rest of her life. Dr. Goldenberg says, “Dialysis does put a lot of pressure on you and it’s very hard to live a normal life when you have to go to dialysis center three times a week.” Brenda recalls, “I just said, ‘Lord, I’m trusting you. I’m having faith in you’. And asked Him to perform a healing and a miracle through these doctors.” Bishop Neal recalls, “It was like we were on a roller coaster going, but God was sitting in the rollercoaster with us.”
By the time Brenda was wheeled into surgery a couple days later, the call for prayer had spread. Once again, her brother, Neal called the CBN prayer team. He says, “And I said, ‘She’s gotta go back in surgery, agree with me in prayer’. And that helped me as well. That faith in God kept me knowing that God’s going to be with the doctors. He’s gonna be with the nurses, He’s gonna be with the anesthesiologist. Whoever’s gonna treat her, He’s gonna be with them.” Brenda made it through the second surgery with no complications and her kidney was saved. Brenda recalls, “Right after that, my urine was clear and I knew the, uh, the Lord showed up and showed out again. I’m Okay.” Dr. Goldenberg says, “I think she had a really, really good outcome in a very dangerous situation. And at, at every step, things could have gone differently and, you know, we were blessed that they didn’t, we were blessed that, you know, we had enough time to get in there to do the right thing, to do it safely and, uh, everything went well.”
On February 20th, Brenda was released. It was her birthday. She’s had no issues with her kidney since. She and her brother are quick to share about the importance of prayer and God’s healing power. Brenda believes, “Sometimes He heals supernaturally, He heals through doctors. He heals through medication. So don’t be hung up on being healed one way from any kind of illness you have. Just pray and follow, uh, the Lord’s leading and your doctor’s leading.” Her brother Neal says, “When you pray it just prepares us for life, life’s experiences, emergencies, whatever comes our way. Prayer and having that relationship with God prepares us for that.” Dr. Goldbenberg says, “I think she is an amazing human being and I’m blessed to have met her.” Brenda concludes, “God is still a healer today and He’s an awesome God and He wants to be a part of your life. So please let Him in.”
